UAB Hypertension Center

The UAB Hypertension Center, one of four centers selected to study high blood pressure as part of the American Heart Association’s Strategically Focused Research Network on hypertension, will generate new knowledge related to patterns and potential mechanisms responsible for abnormal diurnal rhythm of blood pressure. The Center proposes that an abnormal diurnal blood pressure pattern (e.g., nocturnal hypertension and a non-dipping blood pressure pattern) is an under-detected “silent” CVD risk factor, its underlying mechanisms can be identified through basic and clinical research, and these patterns can be diagnosed and treated cost-effectively at the population-level. Therefore, exploration of the etiologies and complications of abnormal diurnal blood pressure patterns is the central theme of the research.

Aims of the UAB Hypertension Center:

(1) To generate new evidence on the role of diurnal blood pressure on CVD risk,

(2) To create and nurture a culture of interdisciplinary hypertension science, and

(3) To build capacity by training the next generation of hypertension researchers with the mission of making discoveries that lead to decreases in CVD.